Editor’s note: This commentary is by Will Patten, a retired Ben & Jerry’s executive and former executive director of Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility. He is president of Back to Basics Vermont Inc.
The United States emerged victorious from World War II as the dominant nation on earth because of a collaboration between a large, activist federal government and an equally large, efficient industrial sector. For several decades thereafter Big Government and Big (capital B) Business worked closely together to defeat Communism, which they jointly viewed as an existential threat.
But in the latter half of the 20th century, an unscathed America joined with rebuilt Europe and Japan to build a capitalist consumer-focused global economy that toppled Soviet Russia and converted China to “state capitalism.” The technological revolution which allowed money and ideas to move around the globe at the speed of light created a new global economy that obliterated national borders. Business was now global; government was still local.
In 1970 the University of Chicago economist, Milton Friedman, famously declared that Business had but one goal: to maximize its profits. Ten years later Ronald Reagan would declare in his inaugural address that government was not a solution, it was the problem. “Reagonomics” held that unregulated Business would produce so much wealth that it would “trickle down” to the prosperity of all.
Essential to “Reagonomics,” which persists to this day as the prevailing economic philosophy, is a weak federal government. The health of our economy is measured by how much stuff Business produces (GDP) and how much private money we entrust to Business (the Dow). Anything that impedes Business, such as taxes and regulations, must be minimized.
Every U.S. president since Reagan, and hence the federal government, has been subservient to Business. The Bushes served the interest of the oil lobby, even if it meant war in the oil fields of the Middle East. Clinton knelt before Big Pharma and allowed them to market their products directly to consumers which led to the opioid crisis. Obama went face to face with an overtly corrupt financial sector and looked the other way.
But with Trump, the denigration of the federal government moved beyond policy discussions to practical applications. Loyalty replaced leadership. Politics replaced science. Ideology replaced intelligence. What Reagan, the movie star, began 40 years ago, was accomplished by Trump, the TV star. Business rules. Government obeys. We have government of, by, and for Business.
It does not surprise me, after 40 years of anti-government maneuvering by Business, that 70 million people voted for Donald Trump and his overt exploitation of our fears and insecurities.
However, America, and the world, now face three existential threats: climate change, a global pandemic and economic disparity. A renewed collaboration between the federal government and the powerful Business sector is necessary to ward off these threats.
Can we muster that effort? We can only allay the politics of grievance by confronting its source: an increasingly technological, dishonest and amoral society that breeds loneliness, anger and despair.
Trillions of dollars will be needed to convert to renewable energy, build a public health system and restore our national infrastructure. But while Business hoards trillions of dollars in cash the federal government amasses huge debts.
Can Business reject the pursuit of short-term profits in favor of long-term sustainability? Can government end its reliance on trickle-down prosperity and invest directly in the welfare of people? Can Business stop trashing government and help restore the people’s trust in democracy? Can government elevate and retain ethical leadership that will restore government of, by and for the people.
The 244 year-old experiment called America hangs in the balance.
